Political commentary from the LA Times

Michele Bachmann refuses to accept Chris Wallace's apology [Video]

Michele Bachmann still feels insulted that Chris Wallace asked her if she was a flake.

The Minnesota congresswoman, who is the latest official candidate in the GOP presidential race, was asked by Wallace on Sunday if, in the wake of a series of gaffes, she considered herself a flake.

On "Fox News Sunday" she told Wallace she was insulted by the question. The veteran reporter produced a follow-up video Monday in which he apologized for asking the question.

“A lot of you were more than perturbed, you were upset and felt that I had been rude to her. And since in the end it’s really all about the answers and not about the questions: I messed up, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any disrespect,” Wallace said, adding that he was merely asking a question that "some people make about her."

Wallace, son of "60 Minutes" legend Mike Wallace, said he thought Bachmann's response to his question was strong.

"I'm 55 years old. I've been married 33 years," Bachmann replied, listing off a series of accomplishments. "I'm not only a lawyer, I have a post-doctorate degree in federal tax law from William and Mary. I've worked in serious scholarship. … My husband and I have raised five kids, we've raised 23 foster children. We've applied ourselves to education reform. We started a charter school for at-risk kids. I've also been a state senator and member of the United States Congress for five years."

When asked about the exchange Monday by Jon Karl of ABC News, Bachmann was still unhappy with Wallace.

"I think that it's insulting to insinuate that a candidate for president is less than serious," she said.

When Karl asked a second time if Bachmann accepted Wallace's apology she said, "Those are the small issues. I'm focused on the big ones."

Bachmann formally announced her candidacy Monday in Waterloo, Iowa, where she talked about how her mother raised their family soon after a divorce.

“We trusted in God and our neighbors, not government,” Bachmann said. “Americans still have that same spirit. But government keeps trying to erase that spirit because government thinks it knows better.”